Watching Shu
by MAI742
Summary: Shu, as observed by various people.


Needless to say, I own none of this stuff. I merely trust that it shall never come to a lawsuit, what with me not making money form this and there being bigger fish to fry.

A kind reviewer brought it to my notice that the fragmentary and concise nature of the story makes it hard for one to understand without some background. In _this_ chapter, which takes place during episode one, we'll be following Corporal Sato and Sergeant Shen - members of GHQ, the UN's specialised bio-safety mission to the Republic of Japan. Whether this is a one-shot or merely the prologue to my own, better-than-canon (gosh I'm modest, har har), version of the entire storyline depends on whether it piques your interest, I suppose.

...better in the _realism_ and _plot_ departments, I like to think. As active as your imagination may well be, I don't think I'm up to the task of helping you out-do the show's _gorgeous_ art and animation. I also recognise that my preference for minimally-synthetic and largely orchestra-based soundtracks, like those of the venerable Hans Zimmer, is not shared by all.

So. Enjoy!

* * *

"Look, Miss" he spoke over the Endlave's loudspeakers "I'm telling you to stop! I am authorised to use force if you-"

He involuntarily shied back as the little robot-thing fired off a bajillion flares as a smokescreen. Sighing, he switched to infra-red vision and headed after her as she sped away across the bridge.

Then, in a flash of light, he lost the signal. He blinked, and he was sitting once more in the cockpit. Glancing to the pod across from him, he saw that Durand had managed to preserve his own Endlave.

Sighing, Corporal Sato opened the canopy and moved to get out. He muttered to himself.

"The hell just happened?"

"_You got your ass handed to you, that's what!_" came a deafening roar in all-too-properly accented English.

Durand winced, pre-emptively, for his partner's sake.

* * *

"Look, kiddo," said Sergeant Shen in his just-passable Japanese "I don't wanna have t'say again this. Over her hand us, please."

Mute, the kid shook his head. Shen met Private Lavrov's eyes. _Softly, softly..._

Keeping his weapon firmly fixed on the girl - actually, no, _lowering_ his weapon for now - he wracked his vocabulary for a way to say this right.

"She is dangerous. Murder. _Murderer_. Cute, but murderer. Please over her hand us."

The kid didn't look like he wanted to believe it. He shook his head.

Internally, Shen sighed. "If _not_ you give us her, we must kill-"

The boy flinched, but didn't leave her side. Lavrov coughed his smile away, and Chen audibly snickered for a moment before he caught wind of Shen's death-glare. "If not you give us her we must too over you hand."

He clicked his tongue and nodded to Chen when he looked his way.

Private Chen slung his weapon and moved to take the girl from the boy's unresisting hands.

Shen considered saying something on his way out, but there was no way this wasn't looking bad in the boy's eyes. Still, Lavrov was giving him a '_Shouldn't you say something?' _look. Shen just glared him down, too.

When they were far enough away, Chen still carrying the girl, Lavrov spoke in his tone-less, godawful Mandarin. Not that Shen's, being Henan-ese, had the most fantastic pronunciation ever. But at least he used the damned tones.

"Or we _kill _also you?" he chuckled "Small mistake, but very hilarious."

"Shut yer fat gob, Lavrov, afore I shut it for ya."

...goddamn _Russkies_, always thinking everything was goddamn hilarious...

* * *

"Major Gunn wants us to do _what?_"

"You heard me. We're quarantining this whole area. _Nobody_ gets in our out 'til we're done looking for this _Void Genome _thing. Got it?"

It was going well until, about two hours into the sweep, the sky lit up with an unearthly blue light.

Chen was the first to speak. "The hell is that?"

* * *

"The hell...?

Sato edged his _(new)_ Endlave just that bit closer. It was so bright he could barely see what was happening, but it sure looked pretty. All the swirling and stuff made a really neat pattern.

Durand kept his own Endlave back a bit, he noted. He was probably afraid the lights would explode or something...

Sato edged his Endlave back a bit just to be on the safe(r) side.

The lightshow cut off abruptly, revealing a figure - just a kid, really - wielding a ten-foot glass blade.

Sato activated the loudspeakers again, moving forward again. "Look, uh... that's really pretty and all, but have you seen a 'void genome' around? It's about..."

He held his fingers apart at about the right distance, but belatedly realised he had no idea just how big the distance between his fingers was when he was using his Endlave.

"Um... it's not big, I mean. Maybe fist sized? A couple of fists. Got this weird little helix thing in it, it kinda _glows _and shit."

The boy shook his head. He looked a bit spooked, but that was to be expected. Endlaves had that effect on people. He could have sworn Durand's Endlave looked unimpressed with his efforts. But if they didn't want to start a war, by accident, they could do without _him_ doing the talking.

_And they said he was fluent..._

"Uh, cool. We've, uh, got a curfew in effect right now while we're searching for this thing so, uh... do you live here?"

The boy shook his head.

"Right, well... we've got a command post set up around her somewhere, we can give you cup-a-soups and stuff until we're done. Ask Major Gunn and he can get you a sick-note for school or something. Come on," he offered a hand "I'll give you a ride."

The boy, looking a bit dazed, remained still.

A hint of hair-dye caught Sato's eye, and the display magnified the sight.

A girl. Knocked unconscious? He wheeled around the boy to take a look at her.

"Is she with y-?"

In another flash of light, he blinked and found himself back in his cockpit.

...

"The _hell?_"


End file.
